Gezahegne Bekele (PhD)
August 13, 2014
Recently a publication called “The Global Slavery Index” was released that documents and identifies issues related to modern day slavery. The publication first defines modern slavery as the possession and control of a person in such a way as to significantly deprive that person of his or her individual liberty, with the intent of exploiting that person through their use, management, profit, transfer or disposal. Usually this exercise will be achieved through means such as violence or threats of violence, deception and/or coercion. In essence modern slavery goes beyond the age old slavery by including slavery-like practices (such as debtbondage, forced marriage, and sale or exploitation of children), human trafficking and forced labor.
The Global Slavery Index compiles slavery related information and presents them in an easily understandable manner. Specifically the index, 1. Provides a ranking of 162 countries around the world, based on a combined measure of three factors: estimated prevalence of modern slavery by population, a measure of child marriage, and a measure of human trafficking in and out of a country. 2. Identifies factors relevant to risk of slavery and provides a standardized measure of these factors that allows comparison country by country. 3. Examines the strength of government responses to modern slavery for the 20 countries at the top and bottom of the Index ranking.
Concepts
Trafficking is one of the main components of Modern Slavery. Using the United Nations’ Trafficking protocol of 2000, Trafficking is identified as 1- Recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons. 2- By means of threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of theabuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person. 3- With the intent of exploiting that person through: Prostitution of others; Sexual exploitation; Forced labor; Slavery (or similar practices); Servitude; and Removal of organs.
Slavery is in turn addressed as the status or condition of a person over whom any or all of the powers attaching to the right of ownership are exercised. According to The Slavery Convention (1926) and Supplementary Slavery Convention (1956), slavery includes slavery-like practices: debt bondage, forced or servile marriage, sale or exploitation of children and descent-based slavery.
The third important component of Modern Slavery is forced Labor in which, according to International Labor Organization (ILO) Forced Labor Convention, 1930 (No. 29), all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily.
Analysis
The analysis of Modern Slavery shows that there are 29.8 million people in the world today that are slaves. The highest Modern Slavery prevalence or slaves as percentages of the population occurs in the West African nation of Mauritania which has a deeply entrenched hereditary slavery, and is ranked number 1 in the Index. Mauritania has a deeply entrenched hereditary slavery. It is estimated that there are between 140,000 – 160,000 people enslaved in a country with a population of just 3.8 million. Haiti -a country plagued by conflict, natural disaster, and with deeply entrenched practices of child slavery- is second on the Index. Pakistan, India, Nepal, Moldova, Benin, Ivory Coast, The Gambia, and Gabon complete the top 10 in prevalence.
However, when actual numbers of enslaved people are considered instead of prevalence rates a very different picture of Modern Slavery can be observed. Nearly 78-percent of all modern day slavery takes place in India, China, Pakistan, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Russia, Thailand, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Myanmar. India for example is estimated to have between 13,300,000 and 14,700,000 people enslaved. The India country study suggests that while this involves the exploitation of some foreign nationals, by far the largest proportion of this problem is the exploitation of Indians citizens within India itself, particularly through debt bondage and bonded labor. The China country study on the other hand suggests 2,800,000 to 3,100,000 in modern slavery which includes the forced labor of men, women and children in many parts of the economy, including domestic servitude and forced begging, the sexual exploitation of women and children, and forced marriage.
Regionally, it is noteworthy that 16.36% of the estimated total 29.8 million people in Modern Slavery are in Sub-Saharan Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa is the largest of the regions measured for the Global Slavery Index. The high prevalence measured for such countries as the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mauritania reflect centuries-old patterns of enslavement, often based on colonial conflicts and injustice exacerbated by contemporary armed conflict. The index asserts “Ongoing conflicts, extremes of poverty, high levels of corruption, and the impact of resource exploitation to feed global markets all increase the risk of enslavement in many African countries”. Child and forced marriages–practices the index considers as a form of slavery– and still tolerated in the context of informal or ‘traditional’ legal systems in many countries further contribute to Sub-Saharan African Modern Slavery.
The Case of Ethiopia1
Ethiopia is among the most enslaving (ranked fifth in absolute numbers) nation responsible for 620,000 – 680,000 modern day slaves. Ethiopia is also the twelfth most slavery prone country in terms of modern day slavery prevalence.
The country study on Ethiopia states that in recent years Ethiopia has seen a rapid increase in outward migration, with millions of Ethiopians travelling throughout Africa and overseas, mostly to Gulf States and the Middle East, to find work. The Ethiopian Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, which is largely responsible for migration issues, reported that it reviewed and approved 198, 000 contracts for overseas employment, predominately for domestic workers in 2012; a 50% increase from 2011. This, however, only represents part of the huge numbers of those migrating overseas – with well-placed sources claiming this is only 30 – 40 % of the overall figure. Irregular migration, including migration facilitated by illegal brokers, makes up the remaining 60 – 70%. According to UNHCR, many of these migrants use Yemen and Djibouti as transit points between Ethiopia and the Middle East. Between 1 January and 30 November 2012, a total of 107, 500 migrants arrived in Yemen; 84,000 of which were Ethiopians.
The country study further explains that the increased migration of Ethiopians abroad has led to increased reports of abuse and exploitation of workers. The majority of regular outward migrants are young women, with limited education, seeking domestic work in the Middle East. There are documented cases of women being stranded and exploited during transit or being exploited upon reaching their destination during their search for work. In the absence of regular employment channels for men, young males turn to irregular migration routes, predominately through the horn of Africa and Yemen. Reports suggest that these Ethiopian males are subjected to forced labor in low skilled jobs including waste disposal, camel and goat herding and construction in Yemen, Djibouti and the Middle East.
In addition to the exploitation of Ethiopian migrant workers abroad, modern slavery is also an issue within Ethiopia, particularly for children. According to UNICEF, Ethiopia has one of the highest rates of child labor in the world. When child labor is taken as a form of modern day slavery, UNICEF estimates that at least 1.2 million children are enslaved in Ethiopia every year. Girls from rural areas are exploited in domestic and commercial sex work, while boys are subjected to forced labor in traditional weaving, herding, guarding and street vending.
Furthermore, the movement of Ethiopian domestic workers has increased in numbers in a few short years, which has led to an increase in the number of recruitment agencies. Illegal private employment agencies have rapidly expanded, with the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicating that more than 1000 illegal brokers are operating in Addis Ababa alone.
Domestic workers travelling under these illegal private employment agencies are particularly vulnerable to exploitation. Some of these workers have no supporting legal contract, and are sometimes bound to a debt-bondage style agreement with brokers in their destination country. The situation is particularly difficult along the Red Sea coast, with reports of traffickers targeting Ethiopians looking to travel onwards to Gulf countries. The migration process itself can be particularly dangerous when undertaken through migrant smugglers, with reports of migrants being held in “torture camps” in Yemen and the Sinai. In a recent BBC report, it was suggested many Ethiopian migrants are held for ransom in these “torture camps”, where the women are routinely raped and men are subject to burns. The report also suggests that those held captive have had their bones broken and eyes removed.
Certain traditional practices make girls particularly vulnerable to slavery-like practices, such as child marriage. Women tend to be around seven years younger than men when they marry in Ethiopia, with around 63% of women aged 25-49 married by age 18; only 13% of men aged 25-49 were married by this age. Some reports indicate that girls can be abducted from their homes and forced to marry. Of the 50,000 estimated women and children involved in the sex industry, it is suggested that a quarter are victims of sexual exploitation and trafficking.
This article is primarily an attempt to present excerpts from the original publication. In order to emphasize the controversial issues and concepts associated with modern slavery in general and in particular the case of Ethiopia, I have taken the liberty of incorporating points in the country studies nearly word for word.
Details of the index can be obtained here:http://www.globalslaveryindex.org/report/?download
The Global Slavery Index compiles slavery related information and presents them in an easily understandable manner. Specifically the index, 1. Provides a ranking of 162 countries around the world, based on a combined measure of three factors: estimated prevalence of modern slavery by population, a measure of child marriage, and a measure of human trafficking in and out of a country. 2. Identifies factors relevant to risk of slavery and provides a standardized measure of these factors that allows comparison country by country. 3. Examines the strength of government responses to modern slavery for the 20 countries at the top and bottom of the Index ranking.
Concepts
Trafficking is one of the main components of Modern Slavery. Using the United Nations’ Trafficking protocol of 2000, Trafficking is identified as 1- Recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons. 2- By means of threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of theabuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person. 3- With the intent of exploiting that person through: Prostitution of others; Sexual exploitation; Forced labor; Slavery (or similar practices); Servitude; and Removal of organs.
Slavery is in turn addressed as the status or condition of a person over whom any or all of the powers attaching to the right of ownership are exercised. According to The Slavery Convention (1926) and Supplementary Slavery Convention (1956), slavery includes slavery-like practices: debt bondage, forced or servile marriage, sale or exploitation of children and descent-based slavery.
The third important component of Modern Slavery is forced Labor in which, according to International Labor Organization (ILO) Forced Labor Convention, 1930 (No. 29), all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered himself voluntarily.
Analysis
The analysis of Modern Slavery shows that there are 29.8 million people in the world today that are slaves. The highest Modern Slavery prevalence or slaves as percentages of the population occurs in the West African nation of Mauritania which has a deeply entrenched hereditary slavery, and is ranked number 1 in the Index. Mauritania has a deeply entrenched hereditary slavery. It is estimated that there are between 140,000 – 160,000 people enslaved in a country with a population of just 3.8 million. Haiti -a country plagued by conflict, natural disaster, and with deeply entrenched practices of child slavery- is second on the Index. Pakistan, India, Nepal, Moldova, Benin, Ivory Coast, The Gambia, and Gabon complete the top 10 in prevalence.
However, when actual numbers of enslaved people are considered instead of prevalence rates a very different picture of Modern Slavery can be observed. Nearly 78-percent of all modern day slavery takes place in India, China, Pakistan, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Russia, Thailand, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Myanmar. India for example is estimated to have between 13,300,000 and 14,700,000 people enslaved. The India country study suggests that while this involves the exploitation of some foreign nationals, by far the largest proportion of this problem is the exploitation of Indians citizens within India itself, particularly through debt bondage and bonded labor. The China country study on the other hand suggests 2,800,000 to 3,100,000 in modern slavery which includes the forced labor of men, women and children in many parts of the economy, including domestic servitude and forced begging, the sexual exploitation of women and children, and forced marriage.
Regionally, it is noteworthy that 16.36% of the estimated total 29.8 million people in Modern Slavery are in Sub-Saharan Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa is the largest of the regions measured for the Global Slavery Index. The high prevalence measured for such countries as the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mauritania reflect centuries-old patterns of enslavement, often based on colonial conflicts and injustice exacerbated by contemporary armed conflict. The index asserts “Ongoing conflicts, extremes of poverty, high levels of corruption, and the impact of resource exploitation to feed global markets all increase the risk of enslavement in many African countries”. Child and forced marriages–practices the index considers as a form of slavery– and still tolerated in the context of informal or ‘traditional’ legal systems in many countries further contribute to Sub-Saharan African Modern Slavery.
The Case of Ethiopia1
Ethiopia is among the most enslaving (ranked fifth in absolute numbers) nation responsible for 620,000 – 680,000 modern day slaves. Ethiopia is also the twelfth most slavery prone country in terms of modern day slavery prevalence.
The country study on Ethiopia states that in recent years Ethiopia has seen a rapid increase in outward migration, with millions of Ethiopians travelling throughout Africa and overseas, mostly to Gulf States and the Middle East, to find work. The Ethiopian Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, which is largely responsible for migration issues, reported that it reviewed and approved 198, 000 contracts for overseas employment, predominately for domestic workers in 2012; a 50% increase from 2011. This, however, only represents part of the huge numbers of those migrating overseas – with well-placed sources claiming this is only 30 – 40 % of the overall figure. Irregular migration, including migration facilitated by illegal brokers, makes up the remaining 60 – 70%. According to UNHCR, many of these migrants use Yemen and Djibouti as transit points between Ethiopia and the Middle East. Between 1 January and 30 November 2012, a total of 107, 500 migrants arrived in Yemen; 84,000 of which were Ethiopians.
The country study further explains that the increased migration of Ethiopians abroad has led to increased reports of abuse and exploitation of workers. The majority of regular outward migrants are young women, with limited education, seeking domestic work in the Middle East. There are documented cases of women being stranded and exploited during transit or being exploited upon reaching their destination during their search for work. In the absence of regular employment channels for men, young males turn to irregular migration routes, predominately through the horn of Africa and Yemen. Reports suggest that these Ethiopian males are subjected to forced labor in low skilled jobs including waste disposal, camel and goat herding and construction in Yemen, Djibouti and the Middle East.
In addition to the exploitation of Ethiopian migrant workers abroad, modern slavery is also an issue within Ethiopia, particularly for children. According to UNICEF, Ethiopia has one of the highest rates of child labor in the world. When child labor is taken as a form of modern day slavery, UNICEF estimates that at least 1.2 million children are enslaved in Ethiopia every year. Girls from rural areas are exploited in domestic and commercial sex work, while boys are subjected to forced labor in traditional weaving, herding, guarding and street vending.
Furthermore, the movement of Ethiopian domestic workers has increased in numbers in a few short years, which has led to an increase in the number of recruitment agencies. Illegal private employment agencies have rapidly expanded, with the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicating that more than 1000 illegal brokers are operating in Addis Ababa alone.
Domestic workers travelling under these illegal private employment agencies are particularly vulnerable to exploitation. Some of these workers have no supporting legal contract, and are sometimes bound to a debt-bondage style agreement with brokers in their destination country. The situation is particularly difficult along the Red Sea coast, with reports of traffickers targeting Ethiopians looking to travel onwards to Gulf countries. The migration process itself can be particularly dangerous when undertaken through migrant smugglers, with reports of migrants being held in “torture camps” in Yemen and the Sinai. In a recent BBC report, it was suggested many Ethiopian migrants are held for ransom in these “torture camps”, where the women are routinely raped and men are subject to burns. The report also suggests that those held captive have had their bones broken and eyes removed.
Certain traditional practices make girls particularly vulnerable to slavery-like practices, such as child marriage. Women tend to be around seven years younger than men when they marry in Ethiopia, with around 63% of women aged 25-49 married by age 18; only 13% of men aged 25-49 were married by this age. Some reports indicate that girls can be abducted from their homes and forced to marry. Of the 50,000 estimated women and children involved in the sex industry, it is suggested that a quarter are victims of sexual exploitation and trafficking.
This article is primarily an attempt to present excerpts from the original publication. In order to emphasize the controversial issues and concepts associated with modern slavery in general and in particular the case of Ethiopia, I have taken the liberty of incorporating points in the country studies nearly word for word.
Details of the index can be obtained here:http://www.globalslaveryindex.org/report/?download
